Softball Game Preview: Central Yellow Jackets vs. Valley Vikings

Central is 1-6 against Valley since April of 2015 but they'll have a chance to close the gap a little bit on Monday. The Yellow Jackets will face off against the Vikings at 5:30 p.m. Central will be strutting in after a win while Valley will be coming in after a defeat.

Central got their first taste of in-conference action on Wednesday and they started things off strong. They were the clear victors by a 23-2 margin over Shawnee. The Yellow Jackets have beaten the Golden Eagles the last five times they've met, but they better watch out: this was the closest the Golden Eagles has come to flipping the script.

Meanwhile, Valley was not able to break out of their rough patch on Wednesday as the team picked up their fifth straight loss. They lost 31-16 to Brown. Even if the Vikings couldn't come away with the victory, the high-scoring effort was a great turnaround for their hitters, which had struggled int the games prior.

Kassidy Ritchie and Johanna Eason did some serious damage despite the final result: Ritchie got on base in all three of her plate appearances with two stolen bases and three runs, while Eason went 2-for-3 with two stolen bases, two runs, and one double. Ritchie is on a roll when it comes to stolen bases, as she's now snagged at least one in each of the last four games she's played. The team also got some help courtesy of Jadelynn Dixon, who got on base in all three of her plate appearances with one run and one RBI.

Central's win bumped their record up to 2-4. As for Valley, their defeat dropped their record down to 5-12.

Central took their victory against Valley when the teams last played back in April of 2024 by a conclusive 22-9 score. Will the Yellow Jackets repeat their success, or do the Vikings have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.